Exhibition reflects a lifetime of discovery

An exhibition curated by SANDY POTTINGER and featuring works by PHILIP SKINNER will be officially opened in the USQ Arts Gallery tomorrow (28 September).

This body of work reflects a lifetime of discovery, and a compelling curiosity that continues to enquire and to explore both imagery and technique.

Born in England, Philip was encouraged to write, paint and compose music from a very early age.

He formally trained at the Central School of Art in London and the Courtauld Institute and went on to work in the Fine Arts Department of the British Council, an Art Adviser with the J Walter Thompson Advertising Agency, and for the British government at the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston.

Philip also worked in Saudi Arabia before family business brought him to Western Australia.

Australia with its bright hard light, hot red earth and searing skies was a revelation and an inspiration to the artist within; Philip felt an immediate rapport with the country and a sense of a spiritual home coming.

From being a resident of the world, Philip eventually became a resident of Toowoomba, a city he loves and has called home for many years.

In 2010, a large retrospective of his works was exhibited at the Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery which led to a show at the Dogwood Crossing Gallery in Miles earlier this year and now this exhibition in the USQ Arts Gallery.

Curator, Sandy Pottinger has known, admired and respected both man and artist for over twenty years.

“I enjoy the vigour of his painting, his visceral surfaces, and the element of mystery that haunts his landscapes; they carry patterns of memory veiled by washes of earthy colour.

“Philip is 85 years old and, despite some serious health issues, he has an inspirational resilience and enthusiasm.

“It has been a privilege to curate this exhibition and for me it is particularly important for the young, emerging artists at the University to have the chance to see one artist’s life-long commitment to art-making in which curiosity and exploration continue to play a significant role.”

The 28 works in the exhibition reflect Philip’s interpretation of the traditional genre of landscape and the relationship between figure and ground. His forms are imbued with a personal vision that abstracts the imagery into metaphor and mystery.

POINT OF CONTACT: REALITY AND IMAGINATION will be officially opened on Wednesday 28 September and continues until 6 October in the USQ Arts Gallery.